The Clock Without a Tick

Whenever Chloe asked her parents why she didn&apos;t tick like all the other clocks, they quickly reminded their daughter how special she was to them. &quot;Honey, you know we love you just the way you are,&quot; her mother gushed. 

Chloe had never imagined the possibility of one day being able to tick. Her mind raced with questions!

This story was inspired by the book A More Beautiful Question by Warren Berger. In the final section--Questioning for Life-- Berger frames the question: Why are you climbing the mountain? These ideas resonated with me in a way that tapped into my passion and curiosity as an educator. I created Chloe the Clock directly from page 181 where Berger writes: The filmmaker Roko Belic told me that he meets many people in his travels, and one of his standard questions when getting to know someone is What are you all about? What makes you tick? &quot;It&apos;s incredible how few people can answer that,&quot; Belic said. I&apos;m curious about why some people are driven, while others seem to go through the motions. I believe it comes back to Berger&apos;s mantra of asking questions and embracing the power of being a thinker. As a first grade teacher, I strive to make my students feel loved, valued, and capable. I want them to begin discovering their own passions so, like Chloe, they can set off on their journey to find what makes them tick. So in case Belic ever asks, that&apos;s what I&apos;m all about. ▪️

At school, Chloe did her best to blend in with the crowd. She focused on developing her hour hand, and her minute hand precision was the best in the grade. Miss Oraez, Chloe&apos;s teacher, encouraged her students to ask lots of questions.

&quot;Of course I want you to learn how to tell time,&quot; she told them, &quot;but I want you to wonder about time, question how it works, and consider new possibilities.&quot;

One day, Chloe stayed after class to talk to Miss Oraez. &quot;Why don&apos;t I tick?&quot; she asked her teacher. &quot;My parents tell me I was born without a gear, but I want to know why that means I can&apos;t tick.&quot; While Miss Oraez thought for a while, her own tick, tick, tick filled the room. &quot;Chloe,&quot; she responded, &quot;you may not tick right now, but that means you&apos;ll have to discover what makes you tick.&quot;

Well, Grandfather Clock was right--Chloe didn&apos;t tick. Her parents loved her so much, it didn&apos;t matter to them. They decided to do everything they could to make Chloe feel like all the other clock kids as she grew up.

Grandfather Clock was the first one to notice that something was wrong. &quot;Why isn&apos;t she ticking?&quot; he asked. A hush fell over the room as Mother Clock and Father Clock leaned closer to their baby clock hoping to hear the rhythmic tick, tick, tick.

Why do we only have two hands, but the clocks across town have three hands?

How can we prevent clocks from being broken?

The more time Chloe spent with Miss Oraez, the more she wondered about the world. She started asking questions in class. 

&quot;Miss Oraez, what will make me tick?&quot; Chloe asked exigently. 

Miss Oraez smiled, &quot;If you keep asking questions, my love, you&apos;ll find what makes you tick.&quot;

The Clock Without a Tick

Chloe wasn&apos;t like other clocks. When she was born, she had two hands and a face, and her pendulum bob was shiny and round. &quot;She is precious,&quot; Mother Clock whispered to Father Clock. They were so happy to have a baby clock that they didn&apos;t notice how very quiet it was in the room. 

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